If you want to be self-sufficient, wild & free standing, energy and water are the two most important topics in a van, camper, van & co. On the subject of energy we have here and here reports.

This 170l of water is enough for over 2 weeks. I calculate 12 liters of water per day for the two of us. For everything: drinking, showering, rinsing or whatever else you do. We manage well with that. Of course it always depends on the local conditions, at the sea or at a lake we need less. Attention: Keep an eye on your water level indicators. This way you not only get a feeling for your consumption, but also for your route planning. Because it's pretty stupid if you've just soaped yourself up in the shower and the water is empty. 

We fill our water tanks via hose, which we screw onto a water tap with a screw thread. The right adapters are important. The Gardena system has proven itself, which also fits on the Alb filter. Inform yourself beforehand, which adapters you need for your travel destination and / or take a universal faucet adapter for connecting the Gardena hose to a faucet without thread, called water thief for short. These are very practical, because in the mountains of Sicily there is wonderful spring water, but no screw thread, but the water flows steadily from a pipe.

I keep hearing "fill the water tank with a watering can", but that is too cumbersome for us or not possible with our outdoor water tanks.

Just in case, we also have a Gardena Drill pump with it. In conjunction with the Alb filter, as well as a cordless screwdriver*, we can pump water directly from a lake. *Yes, this is also on board. You can find it on our packing list Electronics | Light | Communication.

Tip: We never use a foreign hose in our water tank. Because I don't know which septic tank this hose was in before.

By the sea or lake

When we're at the ocean or a lake, I rinse there and we use less water for personal hygiene because we go swimming. I am always surprised how little dishwashing liquid I need. In the sea or lake I rinse without detergent. On the one hand, of course, for the sake of the environment. But on the other hand also because it works very well without detergent. 

Tip: When washing up in the sea and lake, always make sure you don't forget anything. Marc once rinsed in the sea at dusk and forgot a güdemesser and the lid of our pressure cooker there. We didn't notice it until 2 days later at the next spot and had to go back. Because a pressure cooker without a lid is useless. Thank goodness the stuff was still there. However, it has not done the lid so really good 2 days in the sea to lie. 

If I really need dishwashing liquid, I use the biodegradable one from Ecover. For personal hygiene, we take biodegradable shampoo, shower gel and hand soap from Sea to Summit. If you keep 100m distance from a body of water, you can let the service water run into the ground in this case. 

Drinking water

Whenever possible, we fill up our water bottles directly at wells or springs. These are much more common in southern countries than in Germany. It is important to always test how the water tastes first. In the mountains it usually tastes very good, fresh spring water is simply delicious. Then we fill our bottles and tanks without filters. Otherwise, we use our Alb filter.

Tip: avoid filling unfiltered chlorinated water into your tank. You won't get the taste out for a long time.

Tip 2: Before I fill up drinking water, I empty any leftovers from the containers. That way, the drinking water is always fresh.

Tip 3: I do not close empty drinking water containers such as bottles, but leave them open. So no odors or anything else can develop. Before filling, briefly swish water through them and they are clean.

We do not drink the water from our DIY water tanks, because the tanks are made of aluminum.  

In addition, you should be particularly attentive to small village squares. Here there are more often wells than on the main roads. If you want to draw water from springs, streams or rivers, the lonelier the better. This is true not only for humans, but also for animals. Streams and rivers near pasture land should be avoided. 

Running, clear water is always preferable to standing water. Smell always comes before taste. When in doubt, always filter. If you can't find a watering hole, ask at a gas station. And in an emergency, there may be a cemetery nearby. 

Alb filter

To fill our water tank, we use the mobile Alb Filter Fusion, with the 2 filter stages active and nano. We did not want a compromise, but a safe complete solution. I don't want to have to worry about the quality of my drinking water. According to the manufacturer, an activated carbon core in the Active filter stage reduces Chlorine, organic pollutants, various drug residues, light hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, aromas and fine particles (rust, lime flakes, sand).

The 2nd filter stage Nano is the germ barrier. It effectively protects against harmful microorganisms in drinking water. All in all, a safe bet that comes at a price.

Lifesaver Cube

We use the water from our underground tank for cooking, but we do not drink it unfiltered. We use the Lifesaver Cube for filtering. It is compact, affordable and, according to the manufacturer, reliably filters chlorine, suspended solids, cysts, bacteria and even viruses from the water with the replaceable activated carbon filter. The rectangular shape fits perfectly in the cooler. Fill with water, put in the fridge, pump briefly if necessary and drink. However, we find that very chlorinated water with this filter is enjoyable, but not really tasty.

For all those who want a Canister holding module have mounted on their rear carrier, there is also the LifeSaver JerryCan. He has a Filling capacity of 18.5 liters. This is in the colors available in the color Military Green, Sand and Marine.

update: We have replaced this LifesaverCube with our Biolite disinfection unit:

• Water disinfection - 100% without chemistry
• latest, innovative UV-C LED technology
• Disinfection performance up to 99.999%*.
• up to 8 l/min flow rate
• environmentally friendly: mercury-free and without harmful disinfection by-products
• Disinfection directly at water withdrawal (real-time operation)
• Low power consumption due to real-time operation
• Easy to retrofit into existing fresh water systems
• no lamp change necessary
• Maintenance-free (with annual fresh water system cleaning)
• Safe operation due to integrated current or function monitoring, temperature monitoring, service life monitoring and signaling (optical & acoustic)

This water filter is mounted between the pump and the water intake. With a weight of 900 grams and dimensions of 113x159x105mm, it is the most compact I know.

In front of it we have switched a Activated carbon filterwhich filters out the suspended solids.

Now we like to drink the water from our tanks and it tastes really good.

Faucet & Sink

We are in the fortunate situation that we can swing out our kitchen block in the 2nd sliding door. Thus, we can use our kitchen, and thus also the faucet, inside and outside. A special gagdet that any DIY camper can easily replicate is our flexible faucet. This we can not only turn in all directions, but also fix in different places by click-fix on the kitchen block. From the outside, I can then operate the faucet by foot pedal. What I consider completely superfluous is the sink. We absolutely never use that. With our sink, I only transport the rinse to the sea or lake and back. 

Shower

In our 1st California was unfortunately no outside shower installed. Retrofitting was too costly for us. A good solution is the "Helio Pressure Shower" from Nemo with 22 liters capacity. The water tank actually stands on the ground and is operated with a practical foot pump. This is how pressure is built up. The annoying search for a suitable branch is simply saved. However, the water does not get any warmer as a result. But so one showers also faster and saves water :-). It has proven to heat the water briefly. In our current SpaceCamper we have a shower under the tailgate with hot water - pure luxury. There is also a shower tent hidden in the tailgate. You will find this soon on our SpaceCamper packing list. Coming soon. 😉

Swiss water bag

We are talking about a black water bag from the original stocks of the Swiss army. 60 x 45 cm made of double-sided rubberized fabric with 2 carrying handles, absolutely tight. The valve is screwed on, and opens at the push of a button. Can be filled faster & easier than our other tanks. Because you don't need a faucet with screw thread to fill. We take the water bag from the hood and simply hold it under the water source.

I would not have believed at first how happy this gagdet makes us, which we have attached to our hood. Whenever we just need some quick water, we use this water bag on our hood. Whether it's washing fruit, rinsing a coffee cup, brushing our teeth or washing our hands. We always use this water bag because it is just so infinitely practical. Just as well, of course, you can hang it on the C-rail or put it on the roof.

Note: We don't use it for drinking water because it tastes too much like rubber for our taste.

DIY water tanks

A removable valve must be opened so that water can be removed from or added to the separate water tanks. In addition, the pressure in the tank can be increased via an autovalve. However, we have rarely used this so far. The pressure is otherwise low, but sufficient.

Mount outdoor shower inside

Our old California Hector unfortunately had no outside shower. About Switzerland, you can probably buy the original VW outdoor shower as a "kit". But that was too costly for us. I have then found in the facebook group "VW California friends" the following improvement. Peter Dröge has published perfect building instructions here:

As a tip: I bought a white plastic shower hose and replaced the metal hose that was on the sink head. Then it does not rattle in the sink, looks nicer and you also do not scratch the paint .

I always leave the shower on too, just put it around the headrest to rinse. Cost for everything about 25 euros. The shower was available at the hardware store for 9.95 euros. Have fun taking outdoor showers."

Nothing more to add except: Thanks Peter, works wonderfully and a real alternative for our Helio LX.

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